Triangle Trip

I recently upgraded my data card to the new Novatel Wireless MiFi 2200. I will post a product review later on, but I wanted everyone, especially other Sprint customers, to know that upgrading an existing wireless network card contract is absolutely free if you know how to navigate through the hoops. If you spend time on the road without Internet and have to pay for Internet service at hotels, this card is for you (see related post to help justify the cost with your client/management)

I noticed Sprint was offering the MiFi card for free via an online promotion, and then decided to go to a local store to pick up the card for instant gratification. When I was at the store, the clerk would not match the online promotion and wanted to charge me an activation fee.

I got on the phone with Sprint customer service and told them I had an expiring contract and wanted to cancel. The representative was very nice and offered me an upgrade to another data card. I told the rep I wasn’t interested unless I can get the MiFi card, and keep my existing unlimited data plan; new customers buying the MiFi card service are limited to 5 GB. The representative put me on hold for a minute, and eventually got approval to send me the new MiFi card.

If you currently have a Sprint data card and you have an expired or expiring contract, just call Sprint customer service and inquire about an upgrade to the new MiFi card. If your current data plan has unlimited data, do not accept any new data contract; tell customer service you want the same deal. Otherwise, they will try to put you on the new agreement which has a 5GB data transfer limit.

For the past couple of weeks, I have seen Apple’s iPhone ads touting the iPhone and the OS 3.0’s new features — which aren’t really new to the mobile world. Apple has been touting its new iPhone can do:

1.  cut and paste
2.  voice dialing
3.  video recording

These marketed features have been available to me since February 2007 when I got my first Blackberry Pearl. With my previous Blackberries, I have been able to cut and paste since 2005. With my Blackberry Pearl in 2007, I had voice dialing features. With a push of a button (left hand side by default on the Pearl), I could tell my Blackberry to “Call John Smith Mobile.” The voice recognition software was reliable.

As for multimedia recording and playback… With my Pearl and even older Blackberries (i.e., the 8800), you can record video, download MP3/MP4 and it has a removable mini SD slot. You can probably get a 4GB mini SD cards on sale for under $10. What is the size of the Apple iPhone’s hard drive?

Finally… I can even watch live TV via my Blackberry.  Something Apple nor AT&T could do today.

So… What the innovation behind the new iPhone and its new features?  I am still trying to figure that out. What’s so fast about it when its running on AT&T, its (lack of) service partner. Apple is getting too comfortable as a market leader and falling into the Microsoft trap. Instead of inventing new products, it is trying to market its way to profitability. Ironically this is the version 3 of Apple’s iPhone OS or is this Windows 3.0 🙂   Didn’t Apple management say something about Microsoft’s lack of innovation back in 1990?

Captain G is contemplating if he should write a letter the Steve Jobs and warn him about this issue. Alternatively, I could also write a letter to RIM’s Board of Directors blasting management’s lackluster marketing efforts in 2007. RIM has also been too comfortable with its corporate accounts and still does not have a real answer to the iPhone (the Storm is not quite there).

For everyone’s reference, here are three screenshots from my Blackberry Pearl:

After a short trip to Vancouver and using my Sprint mobile broadband card for the very first time in Canada, I saw a $80 data roaming charge on my Sprint mobile broadband bill. I searched the Sprint website but was not able to locate international data roaming rates. All I could find was international voice roaming rates. I then contacted Sprint’s customer service to find out the details behind the $80 data roaming charges but could not get a direct answer from the representative. However the Sprint customer service representative was kind enough to give me an $80 refund due to the lack of information.

With the $80 refund, I was still not happy with the lack of information and requested to speak to a supervisor to get more information. I was transferred to several customer service representatives and finally found the location of international data roaming rates. I would like to share this information with my readers with Sprint or any other mobile carrier. Here’s the link to the Sprint site. Always check the roaming rates before you head abroad.